Curitiba, Brazil

From Florianopolis I took a bus north and stopped in the city of Curitiba. I took a train ride through the mountain ranges down to the small historic city of Morettes, wandered the Curitiba city streets, and visited the amazing Oscar Niemeyer art exhibition / museum. A pretty relaxed few days, preparing for the trip to the monstrous city of Sao Paolo...

More photos here

Florianopolis, Brazil

So far, so good Brazil...

After a great sleep I awoke to gorgeous sunny blue skies a made my way up to the deck for breakfast. I was greeted with a fresh omelet, a massive thermos of sweet hot coffee and a huge platter of fresh fruit - apples, bananas, mandarins, oranges, kaki - all fresh and delicious! Being the only person at the hostel has its advantages, and I made short work of the meal.

On Saturday I was treated to a traditional Brazilian meal called Feijoada, prepared by the wife (an amazing cook who prepared breakfast every day) of the caretaker. I was full after my first plate, but surrendered to seconds and thirds due to the constant cries of ´como mas´ (Eat more!). They speak no English, and I no Portuguese so most of my conversations consist of smiling and ´Si!´, we make do.

Although I had spent a few days at the beach in northern Uruguay, it had nothing on where I am staying The hostel overlooks a (crystal clear) canal , and is only a short walk over the bridge to a long stretch of deserted beach. A short bus ride away are more great beaches, some picking up pretty sizable swells.

Again, it is low season and it would be a completely different experience during summer, but I am really enjoying the relaxed, beach-town atmosphere of the place.

Local fisherman spend their mornings playing dominoes on the tables the line the canal, and spend their evenings cast-netting and fishing on the rock walls and beaches. Not a bad life....

The days are amazing when the sun is out, but when the weather turns for the worse it quickly becomes clear that there is little to do otherwise, even less when you are travelling by yourself... Time to head north again.

More photos here

Getting to Brazil

My intention was to catch a bus from Punta del Diablo (Uruguay) to Florianopolis (Brazil). As part of my Brazil visa requirement this ticket was purchased in Montevideo the week before. Due to the fact that Punta del Diablo is a small coastal town, the bus does not make the detour into the town so I was to wait by the highway to be picked up.

Already long past dusk I took a taxi out to the highway and proceeded to wait by the side of the road for the 7:30 PM bus. 

Finally, at 8:00 PM I saw my bus approach. Relieved to be getting out of the cold wind and to be continuing my travel north, I stepped out onto the outer lane with arm and ticket raised to flag it down.....and it kept on going.....

In disbelief I ran out on the road behind it, frantically yelling and waving, but to no avail. As it vanished around the curve of the road I stood stunned by the side of the road, contemplating my next move.

I waited for another 30 minutes on the slight chance I was mistaken and another bus would be along. I soon gave up on this fantasy, remembering when I bought the ticket I was told that particular bas company only made the trip once a week...

Dejected and angry I made the 10km walk back to the township, failing to flag down the small number of cars that passed in an attempt to hitchhike back. It was a long, dark and dusty walk back to the hostel I had left two and a half hours ago...

Back at the hostel I hastily made a plan to keep me going. There was a bus to Chui (a very small town on the border of Uruguay) in 5 minutes, after quickly buying some US dollars from the hostel owner (I had spent all my Uruguayan money in the belief I would not be back) and made it to the bus with minutes to spare. 

I arrived to Chui at 10:30 PM, and wandered the dark and empty streets until I found the seemingly abandoned bus station. After 10 minutes a light came on and an employee appeared, I was told a bus into Porto Alegre, Brazil, would arrive in 10 minutes. They would not accept payment in US dollars, and had no EFTPOS / credit card facilities so I hurriedly rushed to get my cash changed. This was done by a dodgy looking guy loitering on the street outside the local casino, but it was done without any problems.

I made it back to the bus station without any knives being pulled on me, and with relief I boarded the bus. After the hassle I had of getting my Brazil visa, the border crossing went without a hitch. After a mostly sleepless bus ride I arrived to  Porto Alegre  at 7:00 AM, and bought the onward ticket to Florianopolis.

I tried without success to get my original ticket refunded, but if my Spanish was very poor my Portuguese was beyond abysmal!

At 9:30 AM I boarded the bus to Florianopolis, glad that I had not lost too much time but annoyed at the needless waste of money... The bus ride was long but uneventful, and I finally arrived in Florianopolis at 8:00 PM. Not the best time to be hunting down a hostel (which I had booked but the address was vague), I caught two more local buses and finally arrived in Ilha de Santa Catarina....

Brazil, you better be worth it!

Punta del Diablo, Uruguay

Now this is more like it! Small beach town, one paved road, no high-rises to be seen! And miles and miles of unspoilt and deserted beaches!

Great days spent swimming in the cold but invigorating Atlantic ocean, followed by hours lying in the sun or reading in the hostel´s hammock.

I also walked along the long stretches of beach to the adjacent national park, checking out the Santa Teresa fort, the greenhouses (complete with Spanish speaking parrots) and local surf spots. The water was pretty cold but refreshing, unfortunately the wind came up the last few days which put and end to that.

It is a charming little place, very relaxed and a great way to finish my final leg of Uruguay.

More photos here

Punta del Este, Uruguay

After a lot of running about I finally obtained my Brazilian visa and continued along the Uruguayan coast to Punta del Este. It is very much like the worst of the Gold Coast (concrete sprawl and high-rises everywhere) but with even less charm and worse beaches. It didn´t help that the people at the hostel I stayed at sat on their laptops all day watching movies. During peak season the town fills up with rich Argentinians and Uruguayans but it was a ghost town during the days I was there.

I couldn't leave fast enough....

Some photos here

Montevideo, Uruguay

I arrived to Montevideo on their version of Labor Day, and was greeted with empty streets and closed shops. After checking in to my hostel I decided to walk to the beach, after a few blocks I was approached by a teenage kid muttering spanish. No thinking he was talking to me I kept walking when suddenly he takes out a huge carving knife and proceeds lunge at me! I bolted! I wasn't sure if he was planning to rob me or just wanted to scare me and show off to his friends nearby, but I didn´t stick around to find out!

Two streets away I met with some other people at the hostel and continued to the beach by a different route, feeling lucky that I got away without losing anything...

Not the best introduction to the city...

Montevideo has a lot of interesting museums and art exhibitions, mainly in wonderful old buildings, so I spent the rest of my days checking them out and enjoying the sunshine and warm weather.

I took in a domestic football match between Penarol and River Plate (1-0) at the Estadio Centenario, a FIFA classic world stadium and the site of the first football world cup in 1930 (which Uruguay also won). It also has a great football museum showcasing the countries footballing history and a chance to walk around the deserted stadium.

I didn't sort out my visa for Brazil earlier, so I'm staying longer than I originally anticipated while that gets sorted out. It will give me a chance to relax and take care of some business before the next leg of my trip...

More photos here

Colonia, Uruguay

I caught the ferry from Buenos Aires across the Rio de la Plate and arrived in sunny Colonia del Sacremento, Uruguay. A very small but charming town, I spent the afternoon wandering around the UNESCO listed historic area where the remains of the Portugese and Spanish occupation can be found.

After leaving the cobblestone streets I walked along the beach front to view an old bull fighting ring and was treated to a gorgeous sunset on my return.

More photos here

Buenos Aires, Argentina

I managed to make it through the 40 hour bus ride from El Calafate to Buenos Aires without too difficulty, and arrived early Sunday morning to the 'Paris of South America'. For starters, while not hot, BA is a lot warmer than where I have come from which is a great start. I stayed in the San Telmo district, an old neighbourhood with old buildings, cobblestone streets and lots of broken glass. A short walk to La Boca (home of the Boca Jrs football club) and Puerto Madero (a new upmarket waterfront area) and an easy subway ride to Palermo (home of the rich) it was an ideal location to check out the city.

I spent most of my time wandering the busy streets, going to museums, gardens, planetariums and finally finding some cafe coffee that wasn't Nescafe Instant served in a cup.

There are plenty of parks to be found and most areas have museums and other interesting places so it has been easy to keep busy. I'm making the most of my days, although my fellow travellers stick to a more nocturnal cycle, their 'days' don't end until 7 AM in the morning when they come home from clubs.



And the night life? Anyone who knows me well could tell you that going to hip-hop / RnB / dance clubs etc isn't really my idea of a good night, but there is some fun to be had regardless. If I stayed longer I'm sure I could find something to suit my tastes, but to be honest the night life of Buenos Aires hasn't really captured me. I think with a close group of friends it would be a lot more fun, one of the downsides to travelling solo...

With the days getting cooler I am continuing my journey further north along the west coast of the continent. Next stop Uruguay.

More photos here

Perito Moreno glacier, El Calafate, Argentina

I left Puerto Natales in Chile and made my way to the Argentinian city of El Calafate. A small town with only one real draw-card, but it is a good one. The 34km long, 250 km² glacier Perito Moreno. The next day I set off on the 'Big-Ice' trek. I arrived to overcast dreary skies but the sight of the enormous glacier was astounding! The ice-bridge that occasionally forms when the ice advances to the shores had recently collapsed, the remnants of the natural destruction was still visible.

After spending an hour walking around the boarwalk overlooking the glacier, I took a small boat and crossed Lago Argentino to the far shore. From there it was a one hour walk along the north face of the glacier until we came to a spot where we could access the ice.

Once again it was time to 'crampon up', I wish I could wear those things everywhere! We walked for the next four hours on the glacer while the sun came out from the clouds and brought out the amazing colours of the ice.

We stopped for lunch on the glacier in between navigating watery crevasses and small icy caves. At times it felt like being in a watery desert, the shape of the glacier resembling sand dunes in certain places.

All good things have to come to an end, and late in the afternoon we returned to the shore to catch the boat back to the awaiting bus. Sitting on the open top-deck admiring the last view of the glacier one last surprise was in store. Unknowing to me, a glass of whisky was included in the price! I had spent the day with an Irishman who couldn't drink(!) so I was lucky enough to have a double, chilled with a hefty chunk of glacial ice.... Pretty much a perfect day!

More photos here

Torres del Paine national park

From Puerto Natales I decided to do a five-day, four-night hike (the W-trek) through Torres del Paine national park. Everything we needed for the next five days was carried in on our backs (except for drinking water, that came directly from the many streams). No electronics save a watch and a flashlight, a great chance of pace. I travelled with a swiss guy (Joris) I met on the ferry from Puerto Montt, we decided to share cooking and camping equipment and team up for the trek.

Day 1.
We got a lift with some friends to the national park entrance early morning. We were treated to an amazing sunrise over the steppes and mountain ranges, things were definitely off to a good start. We hiked in overcast skies but it was a warm trek to the first camp site (approx 9 kms). We set up camp only to find the tent we rented was barely long enough for me to lie down in, and only by the smallest margin were we both able to lie side by side.... Nevertheless we then hiked up to the first lookout, the world famous Torres del Paine. Absolutely incredible.... The weather was turning worse but we still got an amazing view to the three towers (with circling Condors) and the aquamarine lake at the base. We met with two travellers from the Navimag ferry at the summit, they shared their wine, cheese and fresh fruit with us(the benefits of paying a lot of money for a guide and a day trip), we were very grateful. We made it back down to the camp site in the afternoon with the skies getting darker.

It was the last time on the hike I would have dry feet.

Day 2.
We awoke in pouring rain to a thouroughly wet camp site. We made the most of breakfast before packing our tent and heading to the next campsite. After an hour of walking in the howling wind and pouring rain through muddy trails and gushing streams I was thouroughly wet. At some point in the 22km trek to the next camp site I lost the use of my fingers due to the cold, it took some hours of massaging and warmth before I could straigthen my little fingers again. Still, even with the bad weather we made good time (mostly keeping on the move to stop from freezing) and we arrived at the camp site with the skies slightly clearing. We set our tent with as much protection as possible and had an early night, hoping for drier days to come.

Day 3.
It rained again overnight and as a result our tent leaked from above and below, now our sleeping bags, backpacks and clothes were damp. Deciding to make to most of it we a hot breakfast and trekked 10kms to the French Valley, a spectacular stretch of trail surrounded by towering mountains, ice fields and through autumnal forrests. An amazing place, we stopped at the final lookout feeling insignificant but in awe. At this stage it started raining again, with occasional sleet so we returned to camp. It was Mark's birthday (one of two North Carolinians we met camping) so we cracked our only bottle of cheap red wine to mark the occasion. Served at room temperature (roughly 9 degrees) it was a nice end to a great day.

Day 4.
Awaking to sunshine but cold weather we began the 24km trip to the next camp site. This section took us through areas of the park devastated by recent bushfires, past gorgeous lakes and through rocky valleys lashed with immense winds. Several times gusts of wind would stop me dead in my tracks, unable to walk onwards. The lakes were whipped into a chop and we spotted the occasional chunk of ice that had broken free from the glacier upstream. After the last grueling 4 km hike through undulating valleys we arrived to our final camp site early in the afternoon. Only a few hundred metres away was the lookout to the Grey Glacier. The sun was shining as we jumped the barrier and walked down the rock face for a closer view. I´m at a loss for words to describe what we saw. Sitting on the rocks in the driving wind but finally with some sun in our faces we sat and watched the glacier, so many shades of blue and patterns, with an amazing mountain range in the background. It was an incredibly vindicating sight after so many hours walking through wind and rain, it was worth every step.

Day 5.
Awoke to more rain, we set off in darkness to the rendevous point to catch the ferry and bus up back to Puerto Natales. The streams were flowing more due to the amount of water recieved in the night, and with the low visibility it made for some interesting crossings, but we made it back with an hour to spare, cold and wet. It was an incredible few days, even with the foul weather I experienced some amazing sights, and wouldn´t hesitate to reccomend it to anyone who is up for a challenge.

The less said about the state of my feet, the smell of my shoes and my clothes in general the better....

A lot more photos here